Luxardo Maraschino
distillery: Luxardo
origin: Italy
abv: 32% (64 proof)
average price: $32
awards: 2011 Bronze Medal at the International Spirits Challenge in London, UK; 2011 Silver Medal at San Francisco World Spirits Competition
details: It is one of the very few liqueurs in the world produced by distillation. Luxardo still produces this wonderful liqueur according to the original formula used by Girolamo Luxardo in 1821. The distinct flavor is obtained from the marasca, a sour cherry variety exclusively cultivated by Luxardo at their estates. After distillation, Luxardo Maraschino is allowed to mature for two years in Finnish ash wood vats, and then its diluted and sugared.
history in their words:
“The firm was founded in Zara in 1821, a port city on the Dalmatian coast (now part of the republic of Croatia) which had been, for more than six centuries, an integral part of the republic of Venice. A citizen from Genova, Girolamo Luxardo, was sent to Zara as consular representative of the Kingdom of Sardinia; he moved there with his family in 1817. His wife Maria Canevari dedicated herself to making liqueurs at home. She was especially interested in perfecting a “rosolio maraschino”, a liqueur produced in Dalmatia since medieval times and often made in convents. The liqueur she produced was of such high quality that it claimed the attention not only of family and friends but of serious connoisseurs. Her husband Girolamo founded a distillery in 1821 to produce Maraschino. After 8 years of research and perfecting the product he obtained an exclusive “privilege” from the Emperor of Austria: this was a valuable and cherished acknowledgment of the superior quality of the Luxardo liqueur, and today the firm continues to be proud to bear the denomination of: ”PRIVILEGIATA FABBRICA MARASCHINO EXCELSIOR”
The original distillery was destroyed during the second World War. During the war most Italians fled Zara or were killed by invaders. The only brother of the fourth generation to survive was Giorgio Luxardo. He had the courage and vision to rebuild the distillery in the Veneto region, our present plant at Torreglia (Padova), together with the young fifth generation Nicolò. And so a new chapter in the ongoing family history was opened. Today the sixth generation of the Luxardo family helps run the company.”